Firefighters and police are to join council officials in a crackdown on people who park dangerously around Ashton Gate for Bristol City and Bristol Rugby matchdays.

And it means people who park their cars on corners, or make the road too narrow for fire engines and buses will be ticketed or could have their car towed away while they are at the match.

The new season for both football and rugby teams looks to have begun with a new ‘joined-up approach’ after some residents said they endured a torrid year last year with parking problems.

Last season residents claimed the club, the police and the council were passing responsibility onto each other to deal with the parking problems that affected the area around Ashton Gate, but this season it appears all three are working together to tackle the issue.

The Long Ashton Park & Ride (bottom right) is less than a mile from Ashton Gate stadium

There were occasions at big games last season where the number 24 bus had to be re-routed because it could not get along Duckmoor Road near the stadium, and some residents said they feared emergency vehicles would not be able to reach homes because of the car-filled streets.

Read More

Now, a spokesman for Bristol City Council confirmed the authorities were working with the club to tackle the problem, and a joint approach involving parking wardens, PCSOs, parking attendants hired by the club and even the fire brigade is now in place.

At the first home Bristol City home game of the season, parking enforcement cones were placed on dangerous corners, and this is set to be followed up with more rigorous enforcement as the season goes on.

“The council is actively working with Avon and Somerset Police and Avon Fire and Rescue through the stadium’s Safety Advisory Group to address parking problems,” said a council spokesperson.

“Measures include deploying a number of PCSOs and Parking Wardens to enforce parking restrictions and ticket vehicles that are dangerously or illegally parked for all home games. The council is also working with Bristol Sport Ltd to investigate further parking restrictions to see what can be implemented,” she added.

Read More

The aim is the ‘stick’ of parking enforcement is being matched by the ‘carrot’ of providing alternatives to get to the game.

Park and ride buses services from three different locations around the city are being increased, the Temple Meads to Ashton Vale Metrobus service is due to start by the end of the year, and the hope is that if – or when – the council take full control of the Long Ashton Park & Ride, it will provide a permanent and consistent place for people to park.

Read More

But one solution to help residents – a formal ‘Matchday Parking’ scheme – still looks a long way off. It could be made part of an extension to the existing Southville Residents’ Parking Zone, but the council has said it has no plans for the current consultation into that RPZ to include the possibility of an extension to cover the area around the stadium.

“The review can look at extending the operating hours within adjacent neighbourhoods covered by residents’ parking schemes such as Southville, to ensure there is adequate parking for residents on match days,” said a council spokesperson.

“It cannot look at expanding existing zones. Any match day residents’ parking scheme will need to be implemented based on the triggers as set out within the Section 106 Agreement,” she added.

Read More

Bristol Sport is required to pay for an official Matchday Parking Scheme, as part of the planning conditions for permission to build the new stadium at Ashton Gate – but that scheme will only be triggered if three out of five consecutive matches at the stadium attract crowds of more than 25,000, and that hasn’t happened so far, and is unlikely to happen this season.

A spokesperson for Bristol City Council said the issue of that ‘trigger’ crowd number is ‘being considered by the council at the moment’, but wasn’t going to change for at least a year.

“The trigger to introduce a match day residents’ parking scheme stated there must be at least three out of five consecutive matches where there is an attendance of at least 25,000. This figure has not changed and will not change for the forthcoming season,” she said.